Moya the osprey released on Pine Island

July 26, 2017

Last Tuesday afternoon, Susanne Quattro and several residents of St. James City gathered on Cherimoya Street to release a young osprey they named Moya.

About five weeks ago, the nest containing the young bird fell to the ground during a thunderstorm. Quattro picked up the baby bird and brought it to the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel Island.

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Moya was released near its previous nest location on Cherimoya Street Tuesday.

PHOTO PROVIDED

"We named him (or her) Moya after the street he was born on," Quattro said. "His father, we named him Norman, was determined to build his nest on top of the telephone pole down the street. We watched poor Norman for months placing sticks on top of the pole. The sticks kept dropping to the ground but he kept trying until finally he got a couple to stay there and he built his nest.

"It was late in the season and the nest was half falling down," Quattro said. "We didn't think the nest would last but it stayed there and in a short time Norman found Roxey. It wasn't too long after that that we spotted this little head popping out of the nest. We weren't sure if he was a boy or a girl so we named him 'Moya' after Cherimoya Street."

In mid-June, a thunderstorm, with high winds and rain, came through St. James City and the nest fell to the ground.

"I believe osprey parents won't or can't feed their young after something like this happens," Quattro said. "When I picked him up I thought he was dead. He was so cold and then he blinked his eyes. I contacted CROW."

Moya stayed at CROW for 5 or 6 weeks until Tuesday when Quattro picked him up at Chiquita Animal Hospital in Cape Coral. Chiquita Animal Hospital is one of CROW's drop-off/pick-up locations.

"CROW prefers to re-nest the birds but Moya's nest was completely gone," Quattro said. "For the last five or six weeks, Moya has been at CROW in an enclosed area where he could learn to fly and feed himself. So we know he's ready to fend for himself."

Quattro and several neighbors went down the street to the lot where the nest was located. Quattro carefully opened the box and Moya stepped out into the sunlight.

"I think he's a little shocked," Quattro said.

Moya didn't move for 10 to 15 minutes until one of the neighbors prompted him to take flight and Moya soared over the canal.

Ospreys are medium sized raptors, reaching more than 24 inches in length and 71 inches in wingspan. Ospreys are found on almost every continent and in a wide variety of habitats. They usually nest near a body of water because osprey's diet almost exclusively on fish.

According to the CROW website, if you find an injured animal you can call CROW's wildlife hospital at 239-472-3644, extension 222, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., 7 days a week.

If you are unavailable to bring the animal to CROW on Sanibel, they have convenient drop off locations in Lehigh Acres, Cape Coral and Fort Myers. The CROW website is: www.crowclinic.org.

Each year, CROW cares for approximately 3,500 wildlife patients including more than 200 species of sick, injured and orphaned wildlife in its veterinary hospital, which is one of the nation's leading rehabilitation facilities for native and migratory wildlife.

"CROW can work miracles," Quattro said. "They have more than 200 volunteers who dedicate thousands of hours helping rescue, care for and rehabilitate wildlife and they worked wonders with Moya."

The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife is located at 3883 Sanibel Captiva Road, Sanibel, FL 33957.